Shadows Pack (Eastern Timber Wolves in Ontario, North of the Great Lakes)

Chapter One: The Prisoner

Calla sniffed the air as Falcon laid down a scent marker on the stone a few yards away. With her brother's mate about to have pups, it was time to renew all their scent markers and start doubling border patrols. As alpha, it was Calla's job to delegate responsibilities so she usually wouldn't be out on patrol with her warriors. As it was, her pack was short on warriors and there had been several trespassers over the past few months so Calla wanted to make sure nearby packs knew that she could defend her borders.

Falcon finished the scent marker and then trotted back to her ready to flank her as she took point. Falcon was her beta so he would run on her right. Oak, her other brother, usually took her left flank. Dune would take right rear and Canyon would take left rear. It had been awhile since they had travelled the borders together, but each wolf fell into position with very little friction. Calla was lucky; her pack was very loyal to her. She often heard rumors about the unrest and civil strife in the neighboring packs. Of course, Calla could hardly judge them. Her own pack, the Shadows, had just had its own civil upset. She had killed the previous alpha.

"Calla?" Falcon's calm voice pulled her out of her day dreams. They had to carry on if they wanted to be back to camp before nightfall. Calla knew that Oak was anxious to get home as soon as possible to check on Laurel; he would be very upset if he missed the birth of his pups. Calla smiled as she thought of the new members they would soon be welcoming to the pack. They were due sometime in the next few days. With this happy thought warming her heart, Calla pushed forward sprinting through the forest and back towards her camp.

They stopped to renew a few more scent markers along the way and were almost home when Calla sniffed the air again. She hadn't really expected to find anything so she had to take a double-whiff to make sure she wasn't mistaken. She wasn't. There was another wolf nearby and he didn't smell like Whitecoats or Redpelts, which meant he must be a rogue or lone wolf. Calla stopped mid stride and slid to a halt, her warriors matched her stop easily and stopped in formation. They were well trained, but Calla didn't notice. She was fixated on the new scent. She had been the first to smell it but now her warriors were bristling too. They stayed in form as Calla slowly stalked toward the scent. She was downwind from the wolf so it wouldn't detect her approach.

Slowly, Calla crept closer and closer until she could get a visual. The wolf was at the lake-shore getting a drink. He was very large, bigger than any of her warriors but he was severely outnumbered. His fur was black with flecks of grey and grey legs. He was casually flicking his tail back and forth as he drank from the lake. Then, suddenly he stopped. Actually, he froze. Before Calla could make a move the wolf turned his head and looked right at her. His eyes met her and for a second she felt lost in his gaze. She was staring into his intelligent grey eyes, mesmerized. Then, he bolted. Her warriors tensed by her side, but they would not move until she gave the order. Calla snarled in frustration. How had she let him slip away? This was her territory and he would not embarrass her in front of her warriors.

"Falcon, take Dune and Canyon and go north. Oak follow me." She barked and her warriors took off. She started sprinting, letting her irritation burn like fire in her veins, pushing her faster and faster until Oak started to fall behind. He was the fastest of her warriors so he wouldn't fall too far behind. Still she couldn't slow up. She had to stay right on the strangers heels so he would have to think fast. If he kept heading west he would reach a canyon. He wouldn't have time to climb down carefully so he would start running alongside. South was the lake so he would have to go north and he would run right into her other warriors. Calla felt her legs burning but she had run this fast for miles before. This was just a warm up.

Oak was a few yards behind her now, but she had finally caught up to the stranger. She could see him making huge strides ahead of her. She pushed herself, quickening her turnover, until she was right on his tail.

There it was: the canyon. As Calla predicted, the stranger started north and before long he was trapped. Her other three warriors were running on his right a few paces ahead of him. On his left was the canyon. Behind him was a very angry she-wolf. Sensing he was trapped the stranger began to slow down. As he did, Calla bunched her muscles and launched herself onto his back, biting at his neck. The two fell down snarling and ripping at fur. The stranger rolled onto his back crushing Calla under his weight. Calla whined but knew he couldn't attack from that position. As he began to roll off of her, Call quickly turned over onto her feet and snapped at his neck. The stranger narrowly escaped her powerful jaws, but his dodge put him off balance and gave Calla the perfect opportunity to strike. In one quick motion she launched herself into his chest and bowled him over landing on top of him with a paw on his neck. She had won this round.

"Who are you?" She barked. Her warriors kept their distance. They knew not to approach her when she was in this kind of mood. The stranger didn't respond so Calla applied more pressure to his throat. He coughed and she let up enough to allow him to speak.

"Onyx…Rouge…Wolf" He choked out those three words and Calla removed her paw. It would be easier to speak to him if he could breathe and she had made her point.

"Why are you in our territory?" Calla asked staying in a defensive position. The rogue rolled onto his belly, but did not get to his feet. At least now he was being respectful.

"It seems that all the lands belong to some pack or another these days." The wolf snarled bitterly. Calla growled a warning and he dipped his head in apology.

"I'm sorry. I have traveled a long way and haven't even been able to drink from the lake without being attacked. I haven't eaten in days because all of the land around here is claimed by different packs." The apology did sound sincere and Calla had redeemed herself in front of her warriors. She sat down and nodded at the rogue indicating that he could rise. He did but made sure to keep his head dipped lower than hers so that he did not appear taller. At least he knew pack etiquette.

"Where do you come from and where do you plan to go?" She asked curiously. The rogue glanced at her and her warriors and then looked down.

"I come from the north and have no set destination. I have been wandering for months." The rogue said this very calmly but Calla found his explanation very odd. Wolves were not solitary; they needed society and family.

"Winter is coming. You wont make it on your own, especially in these lands where so many packs have adjacent territories." Calla said matter-of-factly. He could not argue with her logic, yet he glanced up and Calla thought she saw defiance in those steel-grey eyes.

"Then I'll go elsewhere." The wolf said sharply. Calla was past being offended; she had already asserted her dominance. Still, there was something about this rogue that intrigued her. She couldn't explain why, but she felt like she couldn't let him die, even if that was what it seemed like he wanted. Why else would he not seek the comfort of a pack? Still, she couldn't just invite him into her pack when he didn't even ask for permission. She might risk losing the respect of her wolves. Calla sighed as she came to a decision.

"No one ever gave you that option." She met his angry glare with a calm, leveled gaze. "Falcon, Dune, Canyon." The three warriors dutifully trotted to her side. "Flank him." She could sense their shock, but they did as she said without question.

"Onyx, you are now a slave to the Shadows. We will bring you back to camp and you will remain there til the end of winter. Once the snow stops falling I will let you decide. You can either leave the pack and never return to this land or you can join our pack as the Omega." Onyx growled but didn't dare attack her with so many of her warriors standing guard. Calla turned her back on him to show her confidence. Then, she began trotting back to camp with Oak at her side. Canyon took point in front of the prisoner and Falcon and Dune took each of his sides. In this manner, they silently marched back to camp.

Once Calla and her warriors arrived back to camp, everyone came out of their dens to greet their alpha. Their camp was a small clearing between several massive Hawthorne trees. The wolves had all dug out small dens under the trees. One den was for the alpha, one for the warriors, one for the hunters, and the other for the omega. The dens were small but it helped to keep them all warm during the winter. As Calla walked into the clearing, all of her wolves came up to greet her. They quickly took in the Onyx's massive form and hostile heir and stared suspiciously at him. Calla barked loudly and all of her wolves sat down in front of the tree that housed her den. She climbed up onto one of the thicker roots in order to address her pack.

"This rogue was caught on our territory. He is now our slave. He will not leave camp for the rest of the winter and will be used to keep up with basic camp duties such as cleaning the dens." Calla noticed her wolves looking around at each other unsure of her decision. Nothing made Calla angrier than being second-guessed. In an icy calm voice she added: "He will have one guard on him at all times. If anyone sees him trying to escape: kill him". Her wolves grew silent and she knew that they could agree to this decision. "Dune you have first watch. I will relieve you in a few hours. Dismissed." Her pack intermingled as she hopped down from the branch. She motioned for Rain to come over and the black and white wolf skipped to her side.

"I've already organized the hunt. There is a herd of deer nearby. We are ready whenever you are." Rain reported and Calla nodded. "You sure you can bring back enough food with only four wolves? You can borrow one of the warriors if you need to." Calla said and smiled when Rain bristled. She liked Rain's spunk and often enjoyed teasing the determined she-wolf. "You made me hunt-leader for a reason, Calla. I'll bring back two deer for us tonight." Calla nodded and flicked her tail giving Rain the signal to begin the hunt. Rain howled and three other she-wolves appeared by her side. Two of the she-wolves were her sisters: Valley and Mesa. Along with Laurel, the four she-wolves were the descendants of the last alpha. Thankfully, they had seen the evil in their father's heart and had never challenged Calla even though she had killed him. Call was thankful for their allegiance. The other she-wolf was completely black and had striking blue eyes. Her name was Wren and she had been a rogue before Calla accepted her into the Shadows.

The she-wolves darted out of the camp, eager to start the hunt and earn their rank in the pack. On the other hand, the warriors curled up in the shade of their trees ready to rest before dinner. Dune had brought Onyx to the Pike's den. Pike was the pack's omega: he was the smallest of all of the wolves and had a horrible attitude. Everyone in the pack disliked him and the only reason he hadn't been kicked out was because he was a littermate to Canyon and Dune. Instead, Pike remained in camp and only ate whatever was left over after the pack had eaten. Dune was keeping on eye on Onyx, but also trying to talk to his brother. Pike was rudely blowing him off. On the other side of the clearing, Falcon and Oak were greeting Laurel. Oak looked more anxious than she was and it seemed like Falcon and Laurel were working together to calm him down. Canyon was lying down not too far from the mother-to-be, resting alone. Calla knew that he cared about the pack almost as much as she did; he just hated to show it. Instead, he often sat alone and pretended not to care.

Calla curled up under her tree and rested her chin on one of the roots, keeping an eye on her pack. She tried to focus on Laurel and her brothers but she couldn't help but watch Onyx. She just didn't get him and that frustrated her. Calla never backed away from a challenge, though. With that she closed her eyes to rest until dinner. He would be here all winter and she would figure him out long before that.